Folded foam sheathing with starter strip

ABSTRACT

An exemplary foam insulation board includes a plurality of insulation panels hingeably connected by hinged portions. The foam insulation board has a folded configuration and an unfolded configuration. The hinged portions allow the insulation panels to fold flat against each other in the folded configuration. The plurality of insulation panels includes a first insulation panel and a plurality of additional insulation panels, one of which is an adjacent insulation panel adjacent to the first insulation panel. The first insulation panel also includes a starter portion that extends beyond at least the adjacent insulation panel of the additional panels.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 62/186,451, filed on Jun. 30, 2015, titled FOLDED FOAM SHEATHINGWITH STARTER STRIP, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated byreference herein.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates generally to foam insulation boards, suchas foam insulation boards for installation in a residential structure.

BACKGROUND

In constructing a building, and in particular a residential buildinglike a house, a relatively thin panel board is commonly used to coverthe structural framework of exterior walls. The board is typicallyfabricated from a low-cost, lightweight material having enhancedinsulating properties, such as, for example, extruded or expandedpolystyrene, polyisocyanurate, or polyurethane foam. Usually, the boardsare sized for use in conjunction with conventional frame selections(that is, frames with wooden studs on 16 inch or 24 inch centers). Theboards may also have varying thickness and compositions, depending on,among other considerations, the desired resistance to heat flow.

In some applications, an air and water or moisture barrier is providedbetween the interior and the exterior of the building. Generally, thebarrier system is configured to “seal” the entire structure. This airand moisture barrier may be achieved using a layer of a plastic sheetknown as a water resistive barrier in conjunction with the boards. Inthe alternative, the air and moisture barrier may also be achieved byaffixing an adhesive carrier such as tape over the joints where theboards abut one another.

SUMMARY

Exemplary embodiments of foam insulation board and methods of installingthe same are disclosed herein.

In one exemplary embodiment, a foam insulation board comprises aplurality of insulation panels hingeably connected by hinged portions.The foam insulation board has a folded configuration and an unfoldedconfiguration. The hinged portions allow the insulation panels to foldflat against each other in the folded configuration. The plurality ofinsulation panels includes a first insulation panel and a plurality ofadditional insulation panels, one of which is an adjacent insulationpanel adjacent to the first insulation panel. The first insulation panelalso includes a starter portion that extends beyond at least theadjacent insulation panel of the additional panels.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other features and advantages of the present invention willbecome better understood with regard to the following description andaccompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1A is a perspective view of an exemplary foam insulation board in afolded configuration;

FIG. 1B is a perspective view of the foam insulation board of FIG. 1A ina partially unfolded configuration;

FIG. 1C is an isometric view of the foam insulation board of FIG. 1A inan unfolded configuration;

FIG. 2A is an end view of an exemplary foam insulation board;

FIG. 2B is an end view of an exemplary foam insulation board;

FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C are perspective views of the steps of an exemplarymethod for installing an exemplary foam insulation board;

FIG. 4A is a perspective view of an exemplary foam insulation board in afolded configuration;

FIG. 4B is a perspective view of the foam insulation board of FIG. 4A ina partially unfolded configuration;

FIG. 4C is a perspective view of the foam insulation board of FIG. 4A inan intermediate unfolded configuration;

FIG. 4D is a perspective view of the foam insulation board of FIG. 4A ina partially unfolded configuration; and

FIG. 4E is a perspective view of the foam insulation board of FIG. 4A inan unfolded configuration.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C illustrate an exemplary embodiment of a foaminsulation board 100. The foam insulation board 100 is a rectangularboard that can be folded at substantially parallel hinged portions intoa folded configuration (FIG. 1A) and an unfolded configuration (FIG.1C). In the unfolded configuration, the insulation board 100 may beabout 4 feet wide by 8 feet high or about 4 feet wide by 9 feet high.The width (W) and height (H) of the panel may be varied to suitdifferent wall heights and widths. The foam insulation board 100comprises three hingeably connected panels: a first panel 102, a secondpanel 104, and a third panel 106. While three panels are shown,additional panels may be included. For example, the board may have asimilar overall width but be divided into more than three panels, eachpanel having a reduced width as compared to the first, second, and thirdpanels 102, 104, 106. Alternatively, the overall width of the unfoldedboard may be increased by adding additional panels, for example,additional panels that are attached to board 100 adjacently to the thirdpanel 106 or between the second and third panels 104, 106.

The thickness (T) of the board 100 can vary depending on the desiredinsulation properties. For example, the board may be about 0.5 inchthick, about 0.75 inch thick, or about 1 inch thick. In some exemplaryembodiments, the foam insulation board 100 is a polystyrene foam board,such as an extruded polystyrene foam board or an expanded polystyrenefoam board. The board 100 may also include an air barrier, an air andmoisture barrier, and/or an air barrier and moisture retarder on one orboth sides. Air and moisture barriers prevent air or moisture frompassing through the panels, while a moisture retarder allows moisture topass through the panel to prevent moisture build-up. These elements ofan exemplary board may be selected by a building designer for variousreasons, such as, for example, to improve the efficiency of a heatingand air conditioning systems installed in the building.

The panels 102, 104, 106 are hingeably connected by first and secondhinged portions 110, 112. The first and second panels 102, 104 arehingeably connected by the first hinged portion 110, and the second andthird panels 104, 106 are hingeably connected by the second hingeportion 112. The board 100 is unfolded from the folded configuration inone motion during which the second and third panels 104, 106 areunfolded from the first panel 102 along the first hinged portion 110while simultaneously being unfolded from each other along the secondhinged portion 112 to be laid flat in the same plane as the first panel102. FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C illustrate the unfolding of the insulationboard 100 with an intermediate step shown in FIG. 1B to more clearlyindicate how the board 100 may appear during the unfolding process.

In the folded configuration, the first panel 102 extends beyond thesecond and third panels 104, 106 to form an optional starter portion120. The starter portion 120 is exposed when board is in the foldedconfiguration to allow an installer to begin installation of the boardwithout unfolding the board. In the folded configuration, the panels102, 104, 106 lay flat in a stacked configuration, one on top of theother, as shown in FIG. 1A, to reduce the overall size of the foam board100. The reduced size of the folded board 100 improves transportation tothe job site and handling during installation as compared to a full sizeboard that cannot be folded.

In the illustrated embodiment, the first panel 102 is wider than thesecond and third panels 104, 106 to provide for the starter portion 120and the second and third panels 104, 106 are approximately equal inwidth. For example, in a board 100 that is 4 feet (48 inches) wide, thefirst panel 102 may be 18 inches wide while the second and third panels104, 106 may be 15 inches wide, allowing for a 3 inch wide starterportion 120. In additional embodiments, however, the second and thirdpanels 104, 106 may have different widths than one another, with thefirst panel 102 being wider than each of the second and third panels104, 106 to provide for the starter portion 120.

The first and second hinged portions 110, 112 can be any kind of hingethat allows the panels 102, 104, 106 to lay flat in a stackedconfiguration, one on top of the other, as shown in FIG. 1A, when theboard is in the folded configuration. For example, the panels may beseparate parts that are joined with adhesive tape (not shown) or a hingemember (not shown). The hinge portions 110, 112 may also be formed bycutting nearly through one side of the foam insulation board 100,leaving a portion near the surface of the board 100 to operate as ahinge portion 110, 112. The hinge portions 110, 112 may also bebidirectional or unidirectional. That is, the hinge portions 110, 112may allow the panels 102, 104, 106 to fold in both directions or only inone direction to lay flat upon one another in a stacked configuration.The hinge portions 110, 112 may act as an air barrier, sealing thepanels 102, 104, 106 together.

In some embodiments, retaining portions (not shown) may be included onthe surface of the panels 102, 104, 106 to prevent the panels 102, 104,106 of the board 100 from unfolding until desired. The retainingportions are easily released, however, when the panels 102, 104, 106 areintentionally unfolded for installation of the board 100. In someembodiments, the retaining portions are released by applying force tounfold the panels 102, 104, 106. In some other embodiments, a releasingmember (not shown) may be used to release the releasing portions andallow the board 100 to be unfolded. In these embodiments, the retainingportions may be located anywhere the panels 102, 104, 106 contact eachother. The retaining portions can be any kind of retaining portion, suchas, for example, non-permanent adhesive or other tacky substance,double-sided tape, hook and loop fastener, a mechanical latch, or thelike.

In various embodiments, a retaining member (not shown) is secured to theexterior of the board 100 in the folded configuration. The retainingmember is then untied, cut, or otherwise removed to allow the board 100to be unfolded. The external retaining member may comprise one or morestraps that wrap around the entire folded board 100, or may comprise oneor more straps that connect any combination of the panels 102, 104, 106.In other various embodiments, the retaining members may be fastenersthat penetrate the panels 102, 104, 106 to prevent the board 100 fromunfolding. If a penetrating retaining member (not shown) is used,however, the resulting hole may require patching to maintain theinsulation performance of the board 100.

FIGS. 2A and 2B show an end view of the insulation board 100 in thefolded configuration. Each panel 102, 104, 106 has a first end 210 and asecond end 212. When the board is unfolded into the unfoldedconfiguration, the first end 210 of one panel interfaces with the secondend 212 of an adjacent panel. As can be seen in FIG. 2A, the first andsecond ends 210, 212 of the panels 102, 104, 106 are flat and form abutt joint when the board 100 is unfolded. In other embodiments, as seenin FIG. 2B, the first end 210 comprises a tongue portion and the secondend 212 comprises a groove portion, thereby forming a tongue and groovejoint when the board 100 is unfolded. While the tongue and groove of thefirst end 210 and second end 212 in FIG. 2B are shown with a squareshaped profile, any shape profile may be used, such as, for example, atriangular profile, a trapezoidal profile, a round profile, or the like.The ends 210, 212 do not have to be square and in some embodiments allowthe board 100 to include a corner portion (not shown) when unfolded.

FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C illustrate the steps to affix an exemplary foaminsulation board 100 to a framed wall 300 typical of a residentialstructure. The framed wall 300 is comprised of a plurality of framingmembers. In particular, vertical studs 302, 304, 306 are affixed to abottom plate 310 and top plate 312. The studs are typically spacedapproximately 16 inches apart on center. While a common wood frame wallis shown, the board 100 may be installed on any kind of interior orexterior wall of a structure if so desired by the builder or owner ofthe structure.

To install the foam insulation board 100, the installer holds the foldedboard 100 against the studs and secures the starter portion 120 of thefirst panel 102 to the wall using one or more fasteners (not shown). Atthis point, the board 100 is secured to the wall 300 and the installercan safely release the board 100 without risking damage or injury. In anembodiment of the board 100 including retention portions, such asadhesive portions, between the first, second, and third panels 102, 104,106, safety of the installation procedure is further improved becausethe second and third panels 104, 106 are prevented from swinging outfrom the wall 300 after the starter portion 120 has been secured to thewall 300.

The installer continues installation by unfolding the board 100 untilthe second panel 104 and third panel 106 are flat against the wall 300.Additional fasteners are then used to secure the board 100 to the wall.The fasteners can be any kind of fasteners, such as, for example, nails,screws, adhesive, rivets, staples, or the like. The fasteners should beselected such that they securely affix the board 100 to the wall 300without damaging the board 100. A combination of fasteners may also beused. For example, the board 100 may be glued to the wall 300 duringinstallation and then further secured with nails.

FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4C, 4D, and 4E illustrate an exemplary embodiment of afoam insulation board 400. The foam insulation board 400 is arectangular board that can be folded at substantially perpendicularhinged portions into a folded configuration (FIG. 4A) and an unfoldedconfiguration (FIG. 4E). The foam insulation board 400 comprises fourhingeably connected panels: a first panel 402, a second panel 404, athird panel 406, and a fourth panel 408. While four panels are shown,additional panels may be included. For example, the board may have asimilar overall width but be divided into more than four panels, eachpanel having a reduced width or height as compared to the first, second,third, and fourth panels 402, 404, 406, 408. Alternatively, the overallwidth of the unfolded board may be increased by adding additional panelsbetween, for example, the first and second panels 402, 404 and the thirdand fourth panels, 406, 408, or attached to the board 400 adjacently tosecond panel 404 and fourth panel 408.

The thickness of the foam insulation board 400 can vary depending on thedesired insulation properties. For example, the board may be about 0.5inch thick, about 0.75 inch thick, or about 1 inch thick. In someexemplary embodiments, the foam insulation board 400 is a polystyrenefoam board, such as an extruded polystyrene foam board or an expandedpolystyrene foam board. The board 400 may also include a moisture vaporbarrier on one or both sides.

The panels 402, 404, 406, 408 are hingeably connected by first, second,and third hinged portions 410, 412, 414. The first panel 402 and secondpanel 404 are hingeably connected by the second hinged portion 412. Thesecond panel 404 and the third panel 406 are connected by the firsthinged portion 410. The third panel 406 and fourth panel 408 areconnected by the third hinged portion 414. The second and third hingedportions 412, 414 are substantially aligned, while the first hingedportion 410 is substantially perpendicular to the second and thirdhinged portions 412, 414. The addition of a perpendicular hinged portionallows the insulation board 400 to be folded in two differentdirections, thereby further reducing the length and width of the foldedconfiguration of the board 400 to allow for transportation in smallervehicles or insertion through smaller openings in a building prior toinstallation.

In the folded configuration, the first panel 402 and fourth panel 408extend beyond the second and third panels 404, 406 to form first andsecond starter portions 420, 422. Because the board 400 is folded in twodirections, however, the starter portions 420, 422 may obstruct eachother when the board 400 is fully folded. Thus, depending on thefastener used, an installer may need to partially unfold the board 400to secure one of the starter portions 420, 422 to a wall. Alternatively,the first and fourth panels 402, 408 may fold in different directionsalong the second and third hinged portions 412, 412 so that the firststarter portion 420 extends from a different side of the folded foaminsulation board than the second starter portion 422.

The first and fourth panels 402, 408 are wider than the second and thirdpanels 404, 406 to provide for the starter portions 420, 422. The firstand fourth panels 402, 408 are approximately equal in width, and thesecond and third panels 404, 406 are approximately equal in width. Forexample, in an insulation board 400 that is 4 feet (48 inches) wide, thefirst and fourth panels 402, 408 may be 26 inches wide while the secondand third panels 404, 406 may be 22 inches wide, allowing for a 4 inchwide starter portion 420.

The insulation board 400 is unfolded by first unfolding the first andsecond panels 402, 404 from the second and third panels 406, 408 alongthe first hinged portion 410 until the first panel 402 is aligned withthe fourth panel 408 and the second panel 404 is aligned with the thirdpanel 406. In this intermediate unfolded configuration the first andsecond starter portions 420, 422 are easily accessible by an installer.The second and third panels 404, 406 are then unfolded from the firstand fourth panels 402, 408 along the second and third hinged portions412, 414 until they lie flat and are aligned with the first and fourthpanels 402, 408 in the unfolded configuration. Like the foam insulationboard 100 discussed above, the foam insulation board 400 with fourpanels may also be secured in the folded configuration by retentionportions (not shown) or retaining members (not shown).

The hinged portions 410, 412, 414 can be any kind of hinge that allowsthe panels 402, 404, 406, 408 to lay flat in the stacked configuration,one on top of the other, as illustrated in FIG. 4A when the board 400 isin the folded configuration. For example, the panels may be separateparts that are joined with adhesive tape (not shown) or a hinge member(not shown). The hinge portions 410, 412, 414 may also be formed bycutting nearly through one side of the foam insulation board 400,leaving a portion near the surface of the board 400 to operate as ahinge portion 410, 412, 414. The hinge portions 410, 412, 414 may alsobe bidirectional or unidirectional. That is, the hinge portions 410,412, 414 may allow the panels 402, 404, 406, 408 to fold in bothdirections or only in one direction to lay flat upon one another in astacked configuration.

The foam insulation board 400 is installed similar to the foaminsulation board 100 shown in FIGS. 3A, 3B, and 3C. The starter portion400 is first secured to a wall, and then the board 400 is unfolded andthe remaining panels are secured to the wall. As with the foaminsulation board 100, any kind of suitable fastener may be used tosecure the insulation foam board 400 to a wall.

While various inventive aspects, concepts and features of thedisclosures may be described and illustrated herein as embodied incombination in the exemplary embodiments, these various aspects,concepts and features may be used in many alternative embodiments,either individually or in various combinations and sub-combinationsthereof. Unless expressly excluded herein all such combinations andsub-combinations are intended to be within the scope of the presentapplication. Still further, while various alternative embodiments as tothe various aspects, concepts and features of the disclosures—such asalternative materials, structures, configurations, methods, devices andcomponents, alternatives as to form, fit and function, and so on—may bedescribed herein, such descriptions are not intended to be a complete orexhaustive list of available alternative embodiments, whether presentlyknown or later developed. Those skilled in the art may readily adopt oneor more of the inventive aspects, concepts or features into additionalembodiments and uses within the scope of the present application even ifsuch embodiments are not expressly disclosed herein. Additionally, eventhough some features, concepts or aspects of the disclosures may bedescribed herein as being a preferred arrangement or method, suchdescription is not intended to suggest that such feature is required ornecessary unless expressly so stated. Still further, exemplary orrepresentative values and ranges may be included to assist inunderstanding the present application, however, such values and rangesare not to be construed in a limiting sense and are intended to becritical values or ranges only if so expressly stated. Moreover, whilevarious aspects, features and concepts may be expressly identifiedherein as being inventive or forming part of an disclosure, suchidentification is not intended to be exclusive, but rather there may beinventive aspects, concepts and features that are fully described hereinwithout being expressly identified as such or as part of a specificdisclosure, the disclosures instead being set forth in the appendedclaims. Descriptions of exemplary methods or processes are not limitedto inclusion of all steps as being required in all cases, nor is theorder that the steps are presented to be construed as required ornecessary unless expressly so stated. The words used in the claims havetheir full ordinary meanings and are not limited in any way by thedescription of the embodiments in the specification.

As described herein, when one or more components are described as beingconnected, joined, affixed, coupled, attached, or otherwiseinterconnected, such interconnection may be direct as between thecomponents or may be in direct such as through the use of one or moreintermediary components. Also as described herein, reference to a“member,” “component,” or “portion” shall not be limited to a singlestructural member, component, or element but can include an assembly ofcomponents, members or elements. Also as described herein, the terms“substantially” and “about” are defined as at least close to (andincludes) a given value or state (preferably within 10% of, morepreferably within 1% of, and most preferably within 0.1% of).

What is claimed is:
 1. A foam insulation board comprising: a pluralityof insulation panels hingeably connected by a plurality of hingedportions; a first insulation panel of the plurality of insulationpanels; a starter portion of the first insulation panel; a plurality ofadditional insulation panels including an adjacent insulation paneladjacent to the first insulation panel; wherein the foam insulationboard has an unfolded and folded configuration; wherein the hingedportions allow the plurality of insulation panels to fold flat againsteach other when the foam insulation board is in the foldedconfiguration; and wherein the starter portion of the first insulationpanel extends beyond at least the adjacent insulation panel of theplurality of additional insulation panels.
 2. The foam insulation boardof claim 1, wherein the foam insulation board is 4 feet by 8 feet in theunfolded configuration.
 3. The foam insulation board of claim 1, whereinthe foam insulation board comprises two additional insulation panels. 4.The foam insulation board of claim 3, wherein the first insulation panelis 18 inches wide and the additional insulation panels are 15 incheswide.
 5. The foam insulation board of claim 1, wherein the plurality ofinsulation panels are joined by tongue and groove joints when the foaminsulation board is in the unfolded configuration.
 6. The foaminsulation board of claim 1, further comprising at least one retentionportion that prevents the insulation panels from unfolding.
 7. The foaminsulation board of claim 6, wherein the at least one retention portioncomprises an adhesive applied to at least one face of each insulationpanel.
 8. The foam insulation board of claim 1, further comprising atleast one retention member that retains the foam insulation board in thefolded configuration.
 9. The foam insulation board of claim 1, whereinat least one of the hinged portions is perpendicular to the remaininghinged portions.
 10. A method of installing a foam insulation boardcomprising: providing a foam insulation board comprising: a plurality ofinsulation panels hingeably connected by a plurality of parallel hingedportions; a first insulation panel of the plurality of insulationpanels; a starter portion of the first insulation panel; a plurality ofadditional insulation panels including an adjacent insulation paneladjacent to the first insulation panel; wherein the foam insulationboard has an unfolded and folded configuration; wherein the hingedportions allow the plurality of insulation panels to fold flat againsteach other when the foam insulation board is in the foldedconfiguration; and wherein the starter portion of the first insulationpanel extends beyond at least the adjacent insulation panel of theplurality of additional insulation panels. securing the starter portionof the foam insulation board to at least a portion of a surface when thefoam insulation board is in the folded configuration; unfolding the foaminsulation board into the unfolded configuration; and securing the foaminsulation board to the surface.
 11. The method of installing a foaminsulation board of claim 10, wherein the foam insulation board is 4feet by 8 feet in the unfolded configuration.
 12. The method ofinstalling a foam insulation board of claim 10, wherein the foaminsulation board comprises two additional insulation panels.
 13. Thefoam insulation board of claim 12, wherein the first insulation panel is18 inches wide and the additional insulation panels are 15 inches wide.14. The method of installing a foam insulation board of claim 10,wherein the plurality of insulation panels are joined by tongue andgroove joints when the foam insulation board is in the unfoldedconfiguration.
 15. The method of installing a foam insulation board ofclaim 10, further comprising at least one retention portion thatprevents the insulation panels from unfolding.
 16. The foam insulationboard of claim 15, wherein the at least one retention portion comprisesan adhesive applied to at least one face of each insulation panel. 17.The method of installing a foam insulation board of claim 10, furthercomprising at least one retention member that retains the foaminsulation board in the folded configuration.
 18. The method ofinstalling a foam insulation board of claim 10, wherein at least one ofthe hinged portions is perpendicular to the remaining hinged portions.